Collembola diversity in changing agricultural landscapes of the Thar Desert: A case study in Sriganganagar district of Rajasthan, India

Seven species of Collembola were recorded from the Thar Desert in India for the first time. Their existence and establishment has been attributed to the change in land use pattern of Sriganganagar district due to the development of canal irrigation. Sampling was done at two distant localities, in which one has been under irrigated agricultural activities since 60-70 years, while at the second locality, such activities began 20 years back. Two species, Xenylla obscura and Isotomodes dagamae, dominated the collembolan communities at all sites. The samples from first locality were rich both in number of individuals as well as species. The sites were hierarchically clustered into a dendrogram to present an analytical picture of community development of collembolan species against the time-scale of succession. Attention was sought to study the insect fauna and their activities in relation to the ongoing greening the desert program.